How to Block Ads with Pi-hole on a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W

Using your own Linux gear, you can block ads throughout the whole network.

While internet advertising is an important source of revenue for many businesses, including mine (https://shopmakergenix.blogspot.com/), some individuals choose to avoid it for a number of reasons, including worries about performance and privacy. You may either use ad-blocking software on each of your devices or utilize more efficient alternatives like Pi-hole. Pi-hole is a network-wide ad-blocker that can be installed on a Linux-based device to create a server that filters all of your online traffic and blocks adverts on any device connected to your home network. Without the need for individual device settings, it protects your network against advertisements and trackers. Unlike browser add-ons, Pi-hole can block ads on any network device (such as smart appliances), and unlike browser add-ons, it can also block advertisements on any programme. We'll show you how to set up a Pi-hole on a Raspberry Pi Zero in this lesson from the Raspberry Pi Zero Series. On a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W, let's make a Pi-hole. But first, let's define Pi-hole and how it works to stop advertisements.

What exactly is a Pi-hole, and how does it work?

Pi-hole is a network-wide ad blocker based on the Raspberry Pi. It's simple to set up on the Raspberry Pi Zero by performing certain installation instructions on a Raspberry Pi running Raspberry Pi OS. Once Pi-Hole is setup, you may configure your devices to utilize its IP address, directing all traffic via it. When a website (that serves advertisements) requests the domain of its ad servers to receive an ad, Pi-hole compares the domain name to its list of banned ad-servers.

Then, to begin blocking advertising straight immediately, redirect computers to the Raspberry Pi's IP address. We can also add your favorite websites to a whitelist, which we highly encourage you to do to help them keep the lights on.

Pi-hole is a Linux network advertising and Internet tracker filtering application that also serves as a DNS sinkhole and DHCP server for usage on a private network. It's intended for low-power embedded devices with network capability, like the Raspberry Pi, although it can operate on any Linux machine. Pi-hole has the ability to block both traditional internet adverts and ads located in odd locations like smart TVs and mobile operating systems.

You must first make your Raspberry Pi zero W's IP address static before installing Pi-hole. To make your Raspberry Pi zero W IP address static, follow the instructions below.

1-      In a terminal window, type the following command, and then modify the dhcpcd.conf file. If your Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W and router/mobile are linked through Ethernet cable, remark interface wlan 0 lines; if your Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W and router/mobile are connected via Wi-Fi, comment interface eth0 lines.

sudo nano /etc/dhcpcd.conf

2-      Because we're utilising a mobile hotspot as a router, we'll use the wlan0 interface lines. We'll type a few lines here, save the file with ctrl+X, and then hit Y to quit.

·         Static IP address — This is the IP address you'd want to assign to your device. (Don't forget to include the /24 at the end.)

·         Static Routers — This is your gateway's IP address (router IP address)

·         domain name server static - It's the DNS server's IP address (router IP address). Multiple IP addresses can be written here, separated by a space.

3-      Use the sudo reboot command to reboot your Raspberry Pi Zero, and then use the command ifconfig to check the IP address of your Raspberry Pi Zero W.

Sudo reboot
Ifconfig

The IP address of the Raspberry Pi Zero W is now static.

Pi-hole installation on a Raspberry Pi Zero W

We'll now install pi hole on the Raspberry Pi Zero W. To install pi hole on the Raspberry Pi Zero, we will follow the instructions outlined below.

·         To update and upgrade your Raspberry Pi Zero W, use the instructions shown below. It will take around 30 minutes, depending on your internet speed.

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade –y

·         Run the command below to install pi hole. This script will download and install the Pi hole in terminal. After you've installed the Pi hole, a popup will pop up, and you'll need to hit Ok in that window. After the static IP required dialogue appears, click Yes because we have already set the IP address for our Raspberry Pi Zero W to be static.

·         Decide on a provider for your upstream DNS service. We'll type Google into the search box, then hit Tab, then Enter.

·         To accept the default list of forbidden sites, press Tab and Enter.

·         You accept the default IPv4 and IPv6 protocols by hitting Tab and Enter.

·         Accept the current network setup and set it to static, as well as your IP address and gateway, which we'll need later.

·         Install the web admin interface by hitting Tab and Enter.

·         Install the lightppd web server, which will give the web admin pages, by pressing tab and entering.

·         You accept the default privacy mode by pressing tab and entering.

·         The installation process will now begin, followed by the appearance of an installation window.

·         Now that the installation is complete, we'll update the password for the pi hole using the command below.

pihole -a –p

Connecting the Pi-hole to the Internet

On our Raspberry Pi zero W, we installed Pi-hole. Now we must point our devices to it in order for the Pi-DNS hole's servers to ban intrusive advertisements. We're manually setting a wired network connection on Windows 10. The instructions will be the same for Wi-Fi.

1-      Switch on your computer's network connection.

2-      To adjust the network setup, click the edit button, then manual, then save.

3-      Any address entered in the IP address area should not be the same as the IP address of the Raspberry Pi or the router. You can alter the final digit of the Raspberry Pi's IP address and write it here. Put 24 in the subnet prefix length field, your router's IP address in the gateway field, and the raspberry pi zero's IP address in the preferred DNS field and 8.8.8.8 in the alternate DNS field.

4-      Now, open a web browser on your computer and type in the IP address of your Raspberry Pi, followed by an admin ending, such as http:// 192.168.198.38/admin/. The Pi-hole web page will appear in your browser.

5-      Select Login from the drop-down menu and enter your password.

6-      Your dashboard will open, and you will be able to access all of your information. The UI of the dashboard, as well as all information regarding blocking and graphs, may be seen in the photos below.

The Raspberry Pi Zero Pi-Hole configuration is now complete. You may use the whitelist option to support a website so that they can display your advertisements. You can enter the URL of that site here, and ads from that site will not be prohibited.

This concludes the installation ofPi-hole on the Raspberry Pi zero 2 W. I hope you enjoyed the assignment and gained some important knowledge.

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